Monday, March 23, 2009

Exhausted....

The apartments in the Regatta Expat Community

(Mine looks very similar but not quite as nice)

These early starts are KILLING me so please excuse me if this post is full of babble!

I had my first full day at work today and the language barrier is becoming more and more of an issue as I try to fulfill my role as a Senior PA. The people however are all very welcoming and so sweet, all the women tell me I’m beautiful and nice and bring me gifts of cookies and cakes (went down well after no breakfast again I can tell you!) Libyan women differ as a majority to British – there is no competition, hate or disregard – just a really comforting feeling of sisterhood, I love it.

The employee benefits at this company are also great, as hard as it is, I’m really getting to grips with having a driver! (Beats the tube anyday!) Lunch time is excellent too, the lights are turned out to ensure everyone stops working and takes their break. The majority of employees bring their own lunch but I’m settling with the company lunch for now – tuna baguette, olives and a soft drink – all for 50p! Although eventually I’m sure I’ll follow suit as tuna is the only option on the menu! I went to visit my apartment in the expat compound as I requested today. The compound itself is quite nice with 3,000 expats living within the gated community. There is a shop, tennis courts, a restaurant and a beautiful private beach onsite. I wasn’t fully happy with the condition of the apartent however – the layout is good, spacious living room, big double bedroom, bathroom and kitchen – but the mattress on the bed looks very used , the sofa’s are stained and the bath has rust and paint splashed in it. So, I have requested to stay in the hotel until all these facilities are fixed. Other negatives which can’t be fixed include – no internet access, no house phone & the satellite TV only has 5 English speaking channels which are all news stations. On the plus side they have freshly painted the apartment and have bought a number of brand new appliances for me to use there -: deep fryer, kettle, sandwich maker etc.